Perfect Pairs: Curious Carmine

The official car of Luna Park Cafe

Graffitti-embellished window

Perfect Pairs: Red & Green

150 year old Yaba Ding Ding from Statia

Christmas-y building in Phinney Ridge

Orange You Gonna Play With Me?

While perusing one of my favorite blogs, I noticed there is a game afoot to post photos by autumn color this week.  Today is ORANGE so I rounded up these pictures from my collection:

This, ladies and gents, is a RESTROOM in a park in Seattle. 

See the door in the heel?  Yup, these are some CRAZY big boots.

Summer flowers

Notice they accept collect calls?  Very well-mannered.

Crazy garden art (aka "GART")

I have not one single clue what this means but it had some orange in it:

Perfect Pairs: Swirling Yellows

Circling fish in Volunteer Park

Spiraling glass at the the Sandpoint P-Patch

A Case of the Mondays, #4

For this Monday, the October illustration in my Cavallini calendar didn't need any embellishing, but I was intrigued to study the color palate closely:

Bonus assignment:  Take a close look at these colors.  Where do they exist together in nature, either in pairs or as a group?  Are they hues you choose to work with?  If so, what draws you to them?  If not, why not?

Perfect Pairs: Passed

A broken terra cotta wing in a parking lot

Dog and bike treadmarks on a dusty path

Perfect Pairs: Looking West

Sculpture from artist studio in Georgetown

Garden art from Georgetown Garden Tour

Turquoise Vignettes

I get ridiculously happy looking at and making little vignettes...like the ones in the French General books.  So I tried my hand at creating something similar and I'm pretty happy with how they turned out:

Perfect Pairs: Red, Yellow, Green

Bamboo and weeds growing through utility valves

Tulips in a garden

Unlikely Art

Check out the beautiful colors and textures in this piece of public art. I love the way the blues and greens flow into each other and contrast against the rugged rust background.

It IS public art, isn't it?

 

Wait for it...

 

Wait for it...

Proof that there's beauty in the UNLIKELIEST places.

Righteous Girl...shhhhhh!!!

Boy, can I hold a grudge. We're not just talking garden variety or even super-sized ones; oh no...these are King-Kong big, the kind that need a convoy of Sherpas to carry them.

That would be the work of "Righteous Girl".

Righteous Girl LOVES to make people, things and situations wrong. She zealously charges into battle to "protect" me. Many a time the world has heard her proclaim, "He/she is dead to me!" as she gathers up our toys to stomp home when she determines we have been wronged/insulted/ignored.

Righteous Girl is really, really good at her job. And how could it be any other way? She came into existence PRECISELY to be...well, righteous.

And you know what? When Righteous Girl takes care of business, I feel really, really good...for about 30 minutes. And then I'm really sad and angry and hurting. I look around and Righteous Girl is nowhere to be seen. She's done her job and she's off duty, probably taking a nap.

What I saw is that the bigger the fit Righteous Girl throws, the worse I feel. Because basically Righteous Girl is screaming at the top of her lungs, "THIS SHOULDN'T BE THIS WAY!"

But you know what? It IS what it IS, and it ISN'T what it ISN'T. It's actually just that simple.

It is HARD work to resist what's so. It can be downright exhausting...like that poor schmoe from Greek mythology who had to keep pushing that rock up the hill. And since I get to choose whether I want to keep doing that, it's kind of mental to keep doing it.

So now when Righteous Girl clamors to be heard, I thank her for being on the lookout to protect us. I thank her for being so willing to do her job. And then I sit her down at a virtual table with drawing paper and crayons and a glass of chocolate milk and tell her, "Thanks, I've got this one. You can just hang out here."

And more times than not, she listens to me.

That's one of the things I got from Landmark Education.

A Case of the Mondays, #3

For this week's Monday inspiration, I stepped outside and gathered up some fall leaves to embellish these 2 pages from the lovely Cavallini nature calendar I have up in my office:

I just used a little double sided tape...and presto! chango!

Bonus Assignment:  What natural elements can you spot that would embellish your office space?

Rowdy Reds!

Chippy Chipmunk

Who doesn't love a chipmunk?  This little guy ran back and forth about 50 times in front of me this past weekend when I was hiking with some friends in the lava fields near Bend, Oregon.  Alright, alright!  I'll take your picture, you big ham.

Is THIS my better side?

Or is THIS?

Perhaps you prefer me during a quiet, contemplative moment?

Or perhaps my whimsical side?

Ooops...gotta go!



Gratuitous Cute Animal Shots

OK, I admit it...there's no point to this post except that it contains pictures of my ridiculously cute cat, Indy (aka "Mr. Peebody" due to his occasional naughty spraying habit).

Here he is lounging in front of his favorite pillow, handmade especially for him (or so he thinks) by fellow cat lover, Lisa:

Tired of being stalked by paparazzi, Indy lets down his guard:

Perfect Pairs: Quick Books!

Closeup of a sculpture at the Kirkland Library

Enscribed brick at Kirkland Library

Surprise! It's Yelling Girl

Here's a multi-media journal page thingy I made a long time ago that I just uncovered while cleaning my studio.  Yay for fun surprises!  I love this zany little girl...and the combination of orange and pink...and using staples instead of glue...and fake rhinestones...and butterflies...and ephemera...and hand stamped paper.

A Case of the Mondays, #2

Continuing our scavenger hunt to find creative inspiration in our work places...even on a Monday:

Another month from the Cheesy Vendor Calendar (CVC) turned into a color study, along with the Pantone Color Guide in all its peacock-like glory:

Bonus assignment:  How many sparks of color can you see from where you're sitting right now?

Thank you, Christine!

All the way from Europe, Christine Clemmensen sent me these delightful postcards:

Even the envelope was fancy:

And there were even two tiny prizes inside.  I LOVE prizes!

Perfect Pairs: Petals!

Single flower

Mass of flowers